“At Starbucks, we envision a future where every beverage can be served in a reusable cup,” said Michael Kobori, Starbucks chief sustainability officer. “Offering customers more options to use a personal cup when they visit Starbucks marks tangible progress towards the future. We know our customers are passionate about the planet, and now, they can join us in our efforts to give more than we take, no matter how they order.”

Starbucks is the first national coffeehouse in the US to offer customers the option to use their personal
cup when mobile ordering. In Canada, Starbucks is the first to offer customers the option to use their
personal cup in mobile order for all drinks and all sizes. This is part of a larger cultural movement the
company is leading to shift toward reusables and away from single-use plastics, making it convenient for customers to use their own personal cup for every visit.

“As we know, the most sustainable cup is likely the one you already own. Bringing your own cup to
stores is a critical step toward reducing single-use packaging waste. Starbucks is a leader in this work, as the first national retailer of scale to offer personal cup ordering in every channel, including mobile order,” said Kate Daly, managing director and head of the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners. “The NextGen Consortium is proud to have Starbucks as a founding member of the Consortium to reduce packaging waste and looks forward to supporting Starbucks in their work to
advance a waste-free world.”

How It Works

Customers at participating stores in the US and Canada who bring any clean, personal cup will receive a $0.10 discount on their beverage, and in the US, Starbucks Rewards members will receive 25 Bonus
Stars.*

• In café, customers tell the barista when they order that they brought their own personal cup. Customers choosing to sit and stay in café can also request a reusable ceramic or glass cup at most stores.
• In drive-thru, while ordering, customers order their beverage as usual, and let the barista know they brought their own cup. At the pickup window, baristas will collect customers’ personal cup without the lid using a contactless vessel to ensure hygiene and safety. The beverage will be returned the same way.
• When customers order via the Starbucks app, first they will hit the “Customization” button and then select “Personal Cup” in the customization menu and continue ordering as normal. When they get to the store, customers connect with their barista at the pickup area, and hand over their clean personal cup without the lid. The barista will hand the beverage back in a contactless vessel.

*Valid at participating stores on in-store, drive-thru, or in-app beverage purchases only (max 3x per day).

Frequently Asked Questions

Can customers bring any personal cup?
Customers are welcome to use any clean, personal cup. Now every cup can be a Starbucks cup!
What beverages can customers order in their personal cup? All Starbucks standard size options (Short,
Tall, Grande, Venti) and beverage formats (hot, iced, and blended) are eligible to be ordered in a
personal cup.

How do baristas ensure the correct beverage when it’s ordered in a personal cup?
Customers order their beverage as they would normally, letting the barista know they brought their own
clean, personal cup and the size they would like. Baristas then build the beverage using a new, custom
beverage craft smallware that has standardised lines partners need for measurements, before pouring the beverage into customers’ personal cup, and adding any toppings.

Can a barista help clean a customer’s personal cup before adding the beverage ordered?
For customers’ safety and ours, baristas are unable to rinse personal cups in Starbucks equipment sinks. For this reason, no dirty cups will be accepted.

Can customers use personal cups at licensed Starbucks locations (like those in grocery stores)?
Participation by licensed Starbucks stores may vary. We recommend customers ask their barista during
their next visit.

Designed with Partners and Customers in Mind Starbucks is able to offer personal cup ordering in all channels as a direct result of its test and learn approach, informed by partners (employees) in Starbucks Tryer Innovation Lab and at pilot locations across the US.

Building off a successful personal cup test at 200 drive-thru stores across Colorado last spring, Starbucks store partners informed and helped co-design the custom reusable cup smallware all stores will now use to transfer orders to personal cups.

“As long as we are following all our procedures and steps, it doesn’t add any more time, and it is actually making customers happier,” said Brook, a partner who worked at a store that participated in the
Colorado test. “This has been a really big hit.”

Starbucks has been championing reusable cup options for 30 years, and in recent years Starbucks has
conducted more than 20 reusables tests in stores around the world with more planned in the year
ahead.

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The Argentinian tea and coffee markets are steadily growing this year thanks to generally improving economic situation in the region and stable domestic demand.

Argentina has rich traditions of tea and coffee drinking. While the Covid-19 pandemic and serious financial problems of the country had resulted in a serious drop of consumption of both drinks, the market has almost completely recovered, although the rise of coffee prices by almost 150 percent in the last year put a serious pressure on the market.

For many global coffee majors, the expansion into Argentina along with Brazil, is a priority due to the potential, which is associated with the Latin American region and the exodus of business from the markets of Russia and Ukraine — once the most important emerging markets for them.

With the population of more than 47 million people and a status of the second largest country in the Latin American region, Argentina has always been under the radar of some major tea and coffee producers.

Emanuele Uccellini, the Caribbean and Latin America BU Director for Lavazza Group BU Americas told T&CTJ in an exclusive interview, that Lavazza has been present in the Argentina for many years, and that the market represents a top priority within the Latin America region for two main reasons:

1. The growing interest of consumers in high-quality coffee brands. The demand for specialty coffees has been increasing significantly, especially during the pandemic, and we’ve seen the trend keep growing, mostly among younger consumers.
2. The relevant presence of people with Italian roots: they always feel at home when they sip a good Lavazza cup of coffee.

The Argentinian coffee market has always been of interest to other global majors as well.

One of them is JDE Peet’s, which in recent years has significantly strengthened its positions in the local market. A spokesperson for JDE Peet’s, said, “JDE Peet’s does sell a range of products across our brand portfolio in Argentina including NCC capsules. We anticipate that the demand for coffee and tea will only continue to grow globally. We recently signed an agreement to acquire Marata’s coffee and tea business in Brazil, and South America in general is an area in which demand for coffee and tea is increasing.”

The Argentinian market also attracts the interest of global coffee chains, many of which are considering accelerating expansion in the local market in years to come, which is primarily done through the expansion of the existing portfolio. One example is Starbucks, which considers the local market as a priority for its growth.

A Starbucks’ spokesperson told T&CTJ, “Starbucks entered Argentina in 2008 with our first store in Buenos Aires. Today, the brand operates over 130 stores in the market, providing employment opportunities to over 1,700 green apron partners,” noting that earlier this year, Starbucks celebrated its 15^th anniversary in Argentina, together with its licensed business operator, Alsea.

In April 2023, the spokesperson said that Argentina took a significant step toward a more sustainable future by certifying its first two Starbucks Greener Stores. “This is part of Starbucks global vision to have 3,500 Greener Store-certified locations worldwide, aiming to cut our climate, water, and waste footprints in half by 2030. Starbucks Argentina also continues to expand its plant-based menu offerings in an effort to deliver increased options for our customers.”

Furthermore, in collaboration with Alsea, Starbucks announced plans to operate 2,000 Starbucks stores in the 12 markets where Alsea operates the brand globally by the end of 2025.

Starbucks and other leading Western coffee chains operating in the country have faced strong competition with local players. An example of this is Café Martinez chain, a local chain that has almost doubled the number of its outlets within Argentina the last few years and which plans to continue its active expansion in years to come.

Coffee consumption is growing

A senior researcher at Euromonitor International said that in 2022, the total volume sale of coffee in Argentina is set to post a third consecutive year of growth, following a decline during the outbreak of Covid-19. “For the current year and beyond even though consumers have returned to pre-pandemic habits, total volume consumption is forecast to grow much slower. This is due to the long-term unstable economy, increased poverty, and high inflation, which is diminishing the purchasing power of middle and low-income consumers.”

However, coffee is set to post the highest total volume and current retail value growth in hot drinks, driven by the widening use of instant coffee, which began seeing consumption growth in 2021 and 2022. Instant coffee benefits from being affordable, while offering a widening variety of coffee mixes. New coffee consumers tend to start with lighter options, with less coffee flavour and with more milk content, with the inclusion of chocolate and other ingredients.

The coffee industry has suffered a major world price hike due to drought conditions in Brazil, which led to considerably lower production and higher freight costs. Coffee pod consumption rocketed as consumers prioritised high-quality coffee with a desire to replicate foodservice experiences at home. The coffee pod category was also stimulated by a continuous entry of new brands, including La Morenita, La Virginia, Jacobs, L’Or, Viaggio, and Nestlé Argentina’s latest novelty with Starbucks. Sales of coffee pods were fueled by the growth of ecommerce, the fastest-growing channel in the hots drinks industry in 2022.

According to Euromonitor’s spokesman, retail value sales of coffee in Argentina increased by 67 percent in current terms in 2022 to ARS 80.3 billion The instant coffee mix category was the best performing one in 2022, with retail value sales rising by 75 percent in current terms to ARS 5.4 billion. Retail sales in 2022 had a CAGR of 59 percent, hitting ARS 811 billion (CAGR of 15 percent over the forecast period 2022-2027).

Coffee does grow in Argentina; however, it is produced in only a single plantation in the Yungas — a bioregion of a narrow band of forest along the eastern slope of the Andes Mountains from Peru and Bolivia. It emerged in the early 1970s under the name of Café Baritú when authorities in the province launched an ambitious plan to make Northern Argentina a coffee-producing area.

Graciela Ortiz, the owner of Café Baritú in an interview with the Argentinian iProfesional business paper said that the coffee produced on the Salta farm is Arabica. “It is actually a mixture of two Arabicas, one Colombian and the other Brazilian,” he specifies. “It has a very subtle flavour, with fruity, perfumed notes.”

As for coffee, although Argentina is still far from countries like Norway, Finland or the United States in terms of coffee consumption – being stagnant for years at a per capita consumption of only one kilo per year – the sector has shown sustained growth recently, which is mainly due to the rise of popularity of coffee among local customers.

According to a study conducted by the Argentine Coffee Chamber in collaboration with the firm The Brand Bean, today, coffee in Argentina represents 45 percent of the beverages chosen compared to all other beverages and is consumed mostly by people between 25 and 44 years old.

Most local citizens prefer milder coffees instead of stronger roasts as in many European countries. According to some media reports, an average of one kilo of coffee per capita is consumed annually (208 cups) in the country, with the instant variety being the most consumed. Nine out of 10 Argentines prepare it at home and approximately 50 percent of consumers add milk.

Regarding the most chosen varieties, young people seek to customise it and choose to consume cold and instant coffees. On the other hand, those over 35 years of age choose the capsule format.

According to experts of La Nacion, local consumers are increasingly interested in knowing everything about the product: who makes it, what differential attributes it has, what extraction method enhances it, what the differences are between varietals and what the different types of filtering are like. In addition to choosing coffees from more exotic origins, such as Kenya, the Dominican Republic, Honduras or Haiti, they also turn to cold brew when the temperature rises.

Tea-growing & consuming are strong

In the case of tea, retail value sales grew by 62 percent in current terms in 2022 to ARS 21.3 billion. Green tea was the best performing category in 2022, with retail value sales rising by 73 percent in current terms to ARS131 million.

Retail tea sales had a CAGR of 41 percent in 2022, reaching ARS 118 billion (constant value CAGR of 2% over the forecast period).

Tea sales saw growth in total retail volume terms in 2022; resulting from the increasingly positive perception of tea as a healthy option. Argentinian consumers have always been very health conscious, but the outbreak of Covid-19 increased this, with consumers discussing and looking for ways to boost their immune systems. Greater interest has been given to specific functional benefits offered by different tea varieties, particularly those claiming to strengthen the immune system or provide a calming effect. Thus, green tea and herbal/fruit tea have seen strong growth, driven by their functional fortified options.

Argentina has a more robust tea production than that of coffee. According to Argentinian Mitre Y Elcampo business paper, tea production is in the southernmost part of Argentina, located between 26° and 28° South latitude, there are about 6,800 producers with an area of 40,500 hectares. About 94 percent of them are located in the province of Misiones, and the remaining 6 percent are in Corrientes. A characteristic of Argentine tea is its high concentration of polyphenols.

Approximately 90 percent of Argentine tea production is destined for foreign markets and its volume represents almost 2 percent of world consumption. The main destination is the United States, with 70 percent of the production. Currently, Argentina is the main exporter of tea to the United States of America. Other important destinations are Chile, Poland, Russia, Germany; followed by the United Kingdom, India, Malaysia and 30 other countries

The annual volume of tea exports from Argentina are varied in range of 70,000-75,000 tonnes mostly black tea for about USD $75 – $83 million in value terms. Nearly 64 percent of the cultivated area is certified with the RAS Standard (Sustainable Agriculture Network, triple impact).

Tea consumption in Argentina has been steadily growing with the biggest demand being observed in case of gourmet tea. This has even stimulated the development of tea tourism in the region, with the province of Misiones, which is located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamia region, at forefront of this.

• Eugene Gerden is an international freelance writer, who specialises in covering the global coffee, tea and agricultural industries. He worked for several industry titles and may be reached at gerden.eug@gmail.com.

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• Project Café East Asia 2024 shows the total East Asian branded coffee shop market grew 24% in terms of outlets over the last 12 months to reach 119,221 stores, with China representing nearly 42% of the total market.
• 17 out of the largest 18 East Asian markets achieved net outlet growth over the past 12 months, with seven markets experiencing double digit store growth.
• Eighty-five percent of the 645 branded coffee chains currently in operation across East Asia originate in the region with 95 operators from outside the continent.
• 72% of East Asian industry leaders surveyed report increased sales over the last 12 months, with the same percentage believing trading conditions will further improve next year.

China leads significant coffee shop growth across East Asia

China has overtaken the US as the largest branded coffee shop market in the world by outlets, growing
58% over the last 12 months to reach 49,691 outlets. Growth was led by the rapid expansion of small
store format and delivery focused Luckin Coffee and Cotti Coffee, which added 5,059 and 6,004 net new stores respectively. Starbucks opened net 785 outlets in China during the period and is the second
largest branded coffee operator in the country by outlets.

China is the fastest growing market in East Asia ahead of Malaysia (28%) and the Philippines (15.3%).
Overall, six of the largest ten markets by outlets achieved double-digit outlet growth over the last 12
months.

Starbucks remains East Asia’s largest coffee chain – but competitors challenge dominance

Starbucks remains the largest branded coffee chain in East Asia, having opened 1,223 net new outlets in the last 12 months to reach 13,524 stores across 15 markets. However, domestic operators such as
South Korea’s Mega Coffee, Indonesia’s Tomoro Coffee and Malaysia’s Zus Coffee are challenging
Starbucks’ dominance and increasing their market share.

As the total East Asian branded coffee shop market matures, rapidly expanding operators are
increasingly seeking international growth opportunities. Cotti Coffee has entered South Korea, Indonesia, Japan and Hong Kong since opening its first store in China in 2022, while Luckin Coffee, Kopi Kenangan and Compose Coffee all opened their first international stores within the last 12 months.

Convenience key concern for Chinese coffee consumers

More than 90% of 4,000 Chinese coffee shop consumers surveyed drink hot coffee weekly, while 64%
consume iced coffee at least once a week. Indicating the role of coffee shops in driving consumption,
89% of consumers surveyed visit or order from a coffee shop at least once a week with a fifth of those
doing so daily.

Small format stores focused on convenience are widespread in the Chinese branded coffee shop market. More than 85% of those surveyed have pre-ordered or ordered for delivery from a coffee shop within the last 12 months, with 57% preferencing beverage delivery over visiting a coffee shop.

Industry optimism remains high with further sales and outlet growth on the horizon

The majority (72%) of industry leaders surveyed achieved annual sales growth in their respective markets, with the same percentage positive about current trading conditions.

World Coffee Portal forecasts the total East Asian branded coffee shop market will exceed 136,500 outlets by November 2024, and 181,500 by 2028 representing five-year growth of 8.8% CAGR.

China’s booming outlet growth is expected to slow to 24% in 2024 and 6% in 2028, while Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines are forecast to achieve double-digit outlet growth over the next three
years.

Commenting on the report findings, Allegra Group founder and CEO, Jeffrey Young said, “The East Asian coffee shop market is clearly experiencing rapid growth led by phenomenal outlet expansion in China, which has fast become a global coffee industry powerhouse. It is encouraging to see the established South Korean and Japanese markets continue to perform strongly alongside the growth of coffee culture in fast-developing markets such as Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia.”

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Measuring in at 8,000sqft, the new Starbucks location is the biggest store Starbucks has opened in the UK in recent years, spread across two floors to accommodate the busy shopping and tourist route. The first floor, where the main seating area will be, offers spectacular views of the Edinburgh Castle and Princes Street gardens.  

The 18^th century listed building used to be home to an HSBC Bank and had been vacant since 2021. The redesign and refurbishment carried out by Starbucks not only breathes new life into the building but also pays homage to the rich history and characteristic architecture of Scotland’s capital.  

Alex Rayner, vice president and general manager at Starbucks UK, said: “We are thrilled to welcome the local community and those visiting Edinburgh to our new Princes Street store. One of our largest openings in recent years, the design is all centred around highlighting the iconic local landscape, it’s an exciting way to close off the celebrations of our 25^th anniversary in the UK. 

“The store’s concept is a homage to Edinburgh – a perfect blend between old and new. The curved arch feature over the bar symbolizes the Edinburgh Vaults, but the main statement is undoubtedly the spectacular view of Edinburgh Castle.” 

The new store on 118 Princes Street represents an enhancement of the former Starbucks outlet at 120 Princes Street, which closed last month in anticipation of this relocation. All partners (employees) have been transferred from the previous store, and ten new jobs have been created in the local area. 

Repurposed from a vacant unit, the Edinburgh store is certified as a Greener Store, meeting 25 required standards, as verified by an outside auditor, across eight environmental impact areas such as energy efficiency, water stewardship and waste diversion. This brings the environmental impact of running the store as low as possible, as part of Starbucks ongoing commitment to sustainability and becoming resource positive. This also includes offering a 25p discount to all customers who bring a reusable cup when purchasing a drink.  

This latest store opening is another step in Starbucks plans for growth in the UK, with many more stores planned for communities across the UK, particularly in key city and drive thru locations and with a focus on innovative store formats such as smaller, digitally forward stores.

Customers visiting the new store will be able to choose from a range of beverages and food available from Starbucks Holiday menu. This includes the returning Toffee Nut Latte, Gingerbread Latte, Eggnog Latte, Caramel Waffle Latte and the brand-new Hazelnut Crunch Hot Chocolate. Starbucks® UK proudly serves a broad range of dairy alternative options for free.

Starbucks is committed to 100% ethically sourced coffee in partnership with Conservation International. The cornerstone of its ethical sourcing approach to buying coffee is Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices.  

The new store will be open from 07:00 to 21:00 Monday to Sunday. 

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Through the Global Coffee Alliance, Nestlé and Starbucks bring to market a wide range of products, including Starbucks capsules for the Nespresso and Nescafé Dolce Gusto systems, whole bean, roast and ground and premium instant Starbucks coffees, K-Cup pods and creamers in the at-home category and in foodservice channels.

Nestlé has expanded the Starbucks on-the-go business globally and recently launched a range of ready-to-drink coffee beverages across Southeast Asia and Oceania. It has significantly strengthened its coffee business in North America. In 2022, the Starbucks business generated USD 1.6 billion in incremental sales for Nestlé.

The two companies have expanded the reach of Starbucks branded premium products to nearly 80 markets worldwide, and to-date, more than 14 billion cups are brewed at home and served through foodservice channels.

The alliance builds on the experience and capabilities of both Nestlé and Starbucks. Together, the companies have developed new, innovative products and have introduced the brand to new formats and markets, leveraging both organisations’ product knowledge and Nestlé’s distribution footprint.

“We are proud of the work we have achieved together,” said Mark Schneider, CEO, Nestlé S.A. “Nestlé and Starbucks are deeply committed to growing this business. The results show that. The outstanding collaboration between the two teams is based on common shared values and a commitment to deliver exceptional coffee that is responsibly and sustainably sourced. I look forward to taking our partnership to new heights.”

Laxman Narasimhan, CEO, Starbucks Coffee Company, said, “The formation of the Global Coffee Alliance has allowed both companies to focus on their core strengths, which has proven to be highly successful over the past five years. We are confident that there remains enormous opportunity for the Starbucks brand in this segment and only expect this business to continue to grow and reach more consumers through the alliance.”

The two companies will continue to strengthen the business and expand the Starbucks brand by seeking to create new coffee moments. They aim to capture new opportunities with cold and seasonal coffees – two categories driven mainly by young consumers. They will grow out-of-home programs and solutions, and they will continue to innovate and bring new coffee experiences to consumers.

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Starbucks Coffee launched the pumpkin spice latte – aka ‘PSL’ – in 2003. According to Starbucks, following the peppermint mocha, which was introduced the winter before and was its first ‘blockbuster seasonal beverage’, the company was looking for its first autumn limited-edition beverage. Starbucks noted that when Peter Dukes, (who was heading Starbucks espresso beverages at the time) and his team asked potential customers what flavours they were likely to purchase in a written survey, chocolate and caramel beverages consistently performed the best but pumpkin scored high on ‘uniqueness’.

The beverage creation process started by first sampling pumpkin pies and sipping espresso, and then the experiments began. From there the pumpkin spice latte was born.

In the fall of 2003, Starbucks tested the PSL in about 100 stores in Washington, DC and Vancouver, Canada. The next fall, the PSL rolled out to Starbucks stores across the US and Canada. Starbucks was apparently not completely convinced the PSL would be successful and considered changing over the next few years for something new. However, Dukes and him team realised they had a hit when Facebook and Twitter arrived in 2006, and “customers began sharing their love for PSL” on social media with their family and friends; and the coffee culture was inevitably changed.

These days, PSLs are ubiquitous on coffee shop menus around the world – e.g., Dunkin’s pumpkin spice signature latte and its nutty pumpkin coffee, Peet’s Coffee’s pumpkin latte, PJ’s Coffee’s pumpkin sweet cold foam – and the offerings have been continually upgraded and expanded. Since 2015, Starbucks’ PSL pumpkin sauce has included real pumpkin puree, made from kabocha pumpkins. Pumpkin spice K-Cups and teas (loose leaf and tea bags) from leading brands are now available in grocery stores, mass retailers and online.

Of course, given the popularity of cold brew coffee, Starbucks introduced Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew a couple of years ago and many others followed suit (such as Dunkin’s pumpkin cream cold brew and Peet’s pumpkin oat foam cold brew to name just a couple). And in response to a TikTok craze last year, new to Starbucks’ fall menu this year is the Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai Tea Latte. Peet’s also offers a pumpkin chai, served hot or cold. (Check out our Main News section to see which brands have already launched their pumpkin spice beverage items.)

While I enjoy pumpkin spice-flavoured foods, I have never liked any pumpkin spice latte — too sweet and too filling. But I did try a cold brew version, and I admit that I quite enjoyed it because I found it to be less sweet and not as heavy as a latte.

Other autumn flavours have started appearing on coffee shop’s limited-edition menus such as apple and maple (like Costa Coffee’s maple hazel latte) but they have not yet hit the iconic status of the pumpkin spice latte. Maybe soon there will be a new beverage to challenge it, but for now fans can savour PSL season while it lasts.

• Vanessa L Facenda, editor, Tea & Coffee Trade Journal.
  Keep in touch via email: vanessa@bellpublishing.com Twitter: @TCTradeJournal or LinkedIn: Tea & Coffee Trade Journal

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How the 100% reusables operating model works:

• Customers order their drink as usual at a participating Starbucks, in the café, drive-thru or via mobile order and pay.
• The hot or cold beverage will be served in a personal cup or a ‘borrowed’ cup, which customers can take with them at these 12 stores from 14 August – 22 October.
• If customers are using a borrowed cup, when done with their beverage, they return the cup by scanning and dropping the cup into a participating store’s contactless return bin. The cup will be professionally washed and sanitised, ready to be used again.
• Customers who bring their own personal cup will receive the standard benefit of USD $0.10 off and Starbucks Rewards members will receive 25 bonus stars.
• When customers return their borrowed cup, they will also have the option to register online with TURN to earn points for every Borrow a Cup return and prizes through TURN (a reuse platform designed for scale – through a fully circular system, TURN offers integrated solutions to end single-use plastic).

Why this matters:

• The company has been testing the 100% reusables model in several markets including three cities in the US (including the Starbucks café located in Starbucks headquarters in Seattle), as well as globally in Japan, Singapore, London, and South Korea since 2021.
• After a successful 3-month test, now customers can bring their personal cup through drive-thru going forward at 192 stores across Colorado.
• In support of the company’s goal to reduce waste by 50 percent by 2030, Starbucks is shifting away from single-use plastics, championing the use of recycled content, and promoting reusability, driven by a broader shift towards a circular economy.
• The biggest thing to learn from these tests as the company prepares to bring this model to more stores, is how to offer customers a way to shift away from single use cups toward a reusable to-go-coffee experience, in a way that is convenient, easy, and enjoyable.

Learn more about the test in the 12 Northern California stores in the Starbucks Stories post here and a Google Map of the stores here.

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“At Starbucks, two of our promises that underpin our mission are building a bridge to a better future for our partners and we contribute positively to every community we serve and, our announcements today reinforce these promises from a company grounded in human connection,” said Laxman Narasimhan, CEO of Starbucks. “I had the opportunity to work alongside many partners from our Military Family Stores. This feedback from our partners within our own military community has been invaluable to helping us offer innovative, industry-leading support where they need it most.”

Narasimhan added, “As part of our announcement, we extend more personalised mental health support, support the celebration of heritage, and provide better pathways to develop careers at Starbucks for our veterans and our families.  We are proud to call our military family members and advocates our partners and welcome the ability to recruit even more of them.”

Supporting its partners

To support career development and mobility for reservist partners and military spouses, Starbucks is providing a new centralised service that connects partners to Starbucks opportunities as part of its transfer policy for partners going through relocation. It is estimated that military families move every 2.5 years on average. This resource will enable partners and their families to grow their careers within Starbucks, while navigating relocation required by the military.

Starbucks is also building on its work with Lyra Health to ensure veteran partners and their families have personalised mental health support. Starbucks and Lyra are developing a new workshop that will be available to partners and their families later this fall.

“Starbucks has a deep and abiding commitment to supporting military- and Veteran-connected families all year round, and today’s announcement sets them apart as a premiere thought leader in how companies and our communities become stronger by investing in military and Veteran families,” said Kathy Roth-Douquet, CEO of Blue Star Families. “We are both deeply committed to ensuring that military families have a place to connect, find support, and build enduring relationships wherever the mission takes them.”

Starbucks will work with its partners, VSOs and community members with lived experiences to inform and develop these programmes.

Supporting its communities

Starbucks also announced plans to expand its Military Family Store programme across the US. Since 2015, Starbucks Military Family Stores have been core to advancing Veteran causes, accelerating hiring in the community, and supporting the transition from military to civilian careers. Starbucks current Military Family Stores across the US serve as central gathering places for active military personnel, Veterans, their families and surrounding communities who are often far from their loved ones.

Starbucks aspires to more than double its Military Family Store count, expanding the programme footprint to 250 stores by 2025. Starbucks will locate 100 of these new stores on military bases. Of these stores, select locations will be designed to recognise and honour each of the armed forces in unique ways.

“As a member of Starbucks Armed Forces Network, I’m proud to see Starbucks continue to make a positive impact through their support for our military and Veteran community,” said Jeff J, Starbucks AFN executive champion. “These commitments build on other Starbucks personalised resources and benefits for the military community such as the Starbucks College Achievement Plan extension option, up to 80 hours of military leave with full pay and up to 78 weeks of differentiated wage pay for partners called to active duty. The Armed Forces Network looks forward to continuing to advise on these initiatives as they come together.”

More information on Starbucks’ military commitment is available here and within its 2022 Global Environmental and Social Impact (GESI) Report.

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Efforts at Origin

Partners Coffee, the Brooklyn-based specialty coffee roaster, has sourced its coffee from producers it knows and trusts, from the beginning, recognising its responsibility to foster a sustainable supply chain that ensures quality coffee for consumers and quality of life for the farmers.

It aspires to purchase from the same producers and communities year after year and to work directly with producers, when possible, to promote mutual, long term success through communication and shared growth.

Partners
redesigned all
its Single Origin
coffee bags to
better reflect its
sourcing ethos.
Image credit:
Partners Coffee

Partner’s El Ramo sourcing project that focuses on the bi-annual buying of coffees from a single municipality in the Antioquia department of Colombia, is one of its long-lasting farm relationships. Owing to the strength and resilience of this supply chain, Partners were able to relaunch El Faldón in June 2023, a seasonal single origin offering from one of the producers of El Ramo.

Clipper Tea, based in the United Kingdom, has purchased more than USD $7 million of Fairtrade premium teas to date and is certified organic – limiting the use of harmful pesticides and chemicals used and ensuring it employs a more holistic approach to farming practices that are kinder to the environment. Like Fairtrade, Clipper is on a mission to raise awareness of the benefits of natural and sustainable farming for the planet.

Remedy Kombucha’s Responsible Sourcing & Ethics policy ensures that Remedy and its suppliers uphold laws and regulations regarding modern slavery, labour, health and safety and the environment. The Australia-based company knows where every ingredient in all its drinks comes from, right down to the live culture (also known as SCOBY: symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast).

This traceability is key, not only for minimising environmental impact, but it is also becoming increasingly important for today’s consumer, who wants to know where the food and drink that they are consuming is coming from and are concerned with ‘clean labels’.

Image: Remedy Kombucha

In its 2022 Drink Well. Do Good. Corporate Responsibility Report, Keurig Dr Pepper outlined its 2022 achievements and its targets for 2023. Firstly, in 2021, KDP committed to support regenerative agriculture and conservation on 250,000 acres of land by 2030. Reporting progress for the first year, KDP achieved 11,296 acres in 2022. It also maintained 100 percent responsibly sourced coffee and cocoa in 2022 and was named the largest buyer of Fairtrade Certified coffee in the world for the 13th consecutive year.

KDP also remains committed to sourcing 100percentof its electricity from renewable sources by 2025. The company reported reductions in overall emissions, facilitated in part by purchasing 74 percent of electricity from renewable sources (up from 62 percent in 2021).

In the Community

With the wellbeing of their tea community being a top priority, Canada-based DAVIDsTEA joined the Ethical Tea Partnership (ETP), a global membership organisation that is catalysing long-term, systemic change, to benefit everybody who works in tea — especially people in tea-producing regions. Additionally, DAVIDsTEA has increased its collection of Fairtrade Certified teas by 125 percent by 2022.

DAVIDsTEA has also launched impact initiatives to further its work to create a more inclusive and diverse tea community on a local level. The brand collaborated with Tea Horse, a woman-led, Indigenous-owned artisanal tea company, to create a specialty co-branded tea, called Manoomin Maple. DAVIDsTEA also partnered with the Jun Chiyabari Tea Garden, the sourcing location for their Organic Nepal Black Tea, to address the need for clean drinking water in government schools in Nepal. Since March 2022, one percent of proceeds from Nepal Black contribute to this Nepal Clean Water project. The scope of the project now encompasses four schools making clean water accessible to over 3,200 children and staff.

Image: DAVIDsTEA

Organic herbal tea company, Pukka Herbs, has partnered with Energy Garden, a ‘community benefit society,’ to power its UK sites with 100 percent renewable electricity from community energy projects in the UK.

Pukka has signed on to a two-year power- purchase agreement, whereby the electricity required to power Pukka’s head offices in Keynsham near Bristol and warehouse, Quadrant, will be 100 percent bought from and provided by community energy projects.

Energy Garden is a ‘community benefit society’ that supports communities to install and maintain gardens on railway stations across London to bring green space back into the city. The revenue generated by the sale of community- owned renewable energy, such as that sold to Pukka, funds these gardens, as well as education programmes.

In addition to the cost per kWh that Pukka will pay for electricity, Pukka has also committed to paying a social premium each year, as well as making an upfront donation before the contract’s initiation.

Furthermore, Pukka also has a commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2030 and is one of the 500 B Corps that pledged to achieving this goal in Madrid at COP2025 in 2019.

Pukka and Energy Garden will collaborate on the creation of herbal education modules for the Energy Garden Schools Programme, which focuses on engaging and educating children at Key Stage 2, 3 and 4 levels in and around London on energy and environmental issues.

Image: Starbucks

Starbucks is developing a new sustainability learning and innovation lab at Hacienda Alsacia – the company’s global agronomy headquarters for research and development, located in Costa Rica.

The lab will offer the first wave of educational programming to select Arizona State University (ASU) students and Starbucks partners. The first wave will leverage ASU’s leading educational technology and world-class faculty to enrich the student experience, including study abroad opportunities.

As a company that buys 3 percent of the world’s highest quality and ethically sourced Arabica coffee from more than 400,000 farmers in more than 30 countries, Starbucks understands its future is inextricably tied to social and environmental challenges. The company has a longstanding commitment to work alongside communities to become a resource positive company, including cutting its carbon, water and waste footprints in half by 2030.

Starbucks and ASU have a long-term partnership of working together to build educational and innovative programming. Most recently, Starbucks and ASU reached a milestone of graduating more than 10,000 partners through the Starbucks College Achievement Program.

Melitta North America, a division of Germany-based Melitta Bentz, has launched its 2023 One Million Tree Challenge through American Forests. For every dollar donated, a tree will be planted in the US by American Forests, and Melitta has committed to match each donationplaced on its website until the goal is reached.

Throughout its more than 20 year partnership with American Forests, Melitta has planted over 600,000 trees in landscapes across the country, helping to reduce the effects of climate change by restoring 4,000 acres of forest and absorbing 6,161 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. A single tree can capture 3.5 pounds of air pollutants – like ozone, dust and particulate matter – per year.

Progress in Packaging

To further highlight Partners’ single origin programme, the company redesigned all Single Origin coffee bags to better reflect its sourcing ethos. Now that it has made the move from kraft bags to the new off-white single origin bags, Partners’ entire line up of roasted-to-order coffee comes in packaging that is eligible for Savor’s R&R Reprocess and Repurpose programme. Customers can bring these back to Partner’s – the bag material and tin ties, once returned, are then sent back and given a new life by Savor’s partners in California and Minnesota.

Partners has also expanded its product line and is offering sustainably packaged coffee where possible. For example, it expanded into instant coffee in 2021 and chose a supplier that was able to provide the company with biodegradable sachets and fully recyclable boxes. Its Rockaway Cold Brew pouches are also biodegradable, and because they are extremely lightweight, have a much smaller carbon footprint than shipping canned or bottled cold brew liquid.

Image: Clipper

Clipper has brought a ‘world first’ to market with its unbleached, plant-based, non-GM, and fully biodegradable tea bags. It is working on several upcoming green packaging options, such as reducing its packaging weight and improving its recyclability. Clipper’s target is to ensure its packaging is 100 percent reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025 and it is confident that it will be able to meet that.

Much of the Remedy range is already sold in infinitely recyclable can format, and it is committed to incorporating recycled and/or renewable content in more than 50percentof its products by 2025. In 2022, Remedy UK bottles moved to 50 percent RPET, saving Ca 5 tonnes a year, plus Remedy has removed carbon from black PET lids. The company aims to reduce packaging weight and optimise packaging material efficiency in more than 50 percent of Remedy products.

DAVIDsTEA’s sachet bags are entirely plastic-free and biodegradable. The brand has recently introduced new compostable mailers to replace boxes with excess packaging materials and introduced new wholesale sachet packaging with compostable overwraps, as of late last year, which are currently being introduced through its wholesale channel.

Kiss the Hippo was launched in 2018 with a dedication to bringing high quality, ethically sourced and sustainably roasted coffee to the UK and beyond. With that in mind, it developed its own home compostable Nespresso-compatible coffee pods, which, like the whole brand, are entirely carbon negative. They are 100 percent plastic free and biobased, offering specialty grade coffee in a recycled and recyclable packaging. Further, its cold brew is served in RTD cans that are plastic free and infinitely recyclable.

In-HouseTargets

Remedy’s new state of the art fermentary continues to follow the same traditional brewing methods, with significant investment in sustainability. Thanks to 2,000 solar panels on the building’s roof, production is powered by renewable energy throughout the day. Organic waste (including tea, ginger and SCOBY) is processed to produce organic fertiliser. Rainwater is also harvested for appropriate grey water use.

Remedy has a comprehensive sustainability strategy in place and is committed to achieving identifiable goals by 2025. This includes sourcing 50 percent of its energy from renewable energy sources, diverting more than 50 percent of solid waste generated at its manufacturing facilities from landfill, and reducing its water usage by at least 25 percent.

Nestlé has published its 2022 Annual Report alongside its Creating Shared Value and Sustainability (CSV) Report.As part of its focus on ‘Good for You’, Nestlé strives to be an industry leader in bringing tasty, balanced diets within reach for people around the world. Nestlé has benchmarked its products against the Health Star Rating (HSR) system, a nutrient profiling system used by the Access to Nutrition Index. The results show that Nestlé products,with an HSR rating of 3.5 stars and above, account for close to 60 percent of the company’s sales. The company has committed to setting a global target for the healthier part of its portfolio.

As part of its ‘Good for the Planet’ work, Nestlé further reduced greenhouse gas emissions to below its 2018 baseline. It is now well beyond peak carbon. Nestlé is tackling the emissions within its own operations head on. For example, it increased its use of renewable electricity last year and is on track to achieve 100 percent renewable electricity by 2025.

Image: Melitta

Several years ago, Melitta’s installed solar panels at its coffee roasting facility in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The plant’s solar panels have an estimated annual environmental benefit equivalent to the planting of 50,942 trees, the conservation of 367,425 gallons of water and the removal of 1,017,767 pounds of CO2 from the earth’s atmosphere.Starbucks has certified its 3,508 Greener Stores globally, expanding the programme to 20 markets, with many first-in-market Greener Stores across Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Starbucks has certified its 3,508 Greener Stores globally, expanding the programme to 20 markets, with many first-in-market Greener Stores across Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Starbucks Greener Stores Framework, co-developed with the World Wildlife Fund, includes a set of 25 performance-based standards across environmental impact areas such as energy efficiency, water stewardship, and waste diversion. Some stores have obvious elements like solarpanels or water recycling tanks. While others have less obvious features behind the counter like high efficiency appliances, low-emitting paint and sealants, recycling tampers, and energy efficient HVAC temperature systems.

In the US, Starbucks Greener Stores practices have saved the company almost USD $60 million in annual operating costs, including 30percentwater savings and 30percentenergy reduction when compared to historic store practices. In markets around the world, Greener Stores energy and water savings and waste diversion help advance the company’s goal to reduce carbon emissions, water usage and landfill waste by 50 percent by 2030.

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At the category level, the top three performers currently are: RTD coffee, still waters and soft drinks. Brands with the strongest momentum (brand trajectory) include Chameleon Hand-Crafted Cold Brew, PRIME and Electrolit; the weakest in brand momentum include: 7-Up, Sprite and Canada Dry. 

The performance of RTD coffee on the list is not unexpected given that 65% of Americans consumed coffee in the past week according to the National Coffee Association’s (NCA) Spring 2023 National Coffee Drinking Trends (NCDT) Survey, with 11% consuming RTD coffee within the past week. 

Category laggards – ranking among the bottom three – include enhanced waters, RTD teas and sparkling waters. It is surprising to see the RTD tea category so low on the list given that more than 85% of tea consumed in the US still is either RTD tea or iced tea. 

Favoured brands among the youngest and oldest surveyed generations, Gen Z (15% of the US adult gen pop) prefers Starbucks Frappuccino, Dunkin’ Iced Coffee, AriZona Iced Tea, Nestlé PureLife. and Gatorade, while Baby Boomers (27% of US adults) choose Lipton, Aquafina, Dasani, Gatorade, and Coca-Cola. 

The Bev50 survey, created by neuro-market research firm Alpha-Diver, is based on 100+ psychological metrics across a representative US population sample. Alpha-Diver is a market research firm that applies neuroscience to better understand marketplace behaviour. The firm’s neuroscientists and strategists work with leading brands, retailers and the Wall Street analyst community to explain, measure, and predict consumer behaviour. 

The survey, fielded online (via computer or mobile device) between April and June 2023, among 2,970 respondents, was conducted across eight categories, from multi-billion dollar brands to challengers. There were two waves of 1,500 respondents each, one conducted from 27 April 27 to 2 May, and the second from 2-8 June. The sample is closely matched to US census figures for gender, age, and ethnicity to approximate the general population ages 18-75 as closely as possible.  

Fifty-one percent of responders were female, with an average age of 45 and a media income of USD $59,000. Forty-two percent of responders live in suburban settings, 36% in urban areas and 22% in rural communities. The generational breakdown: 15% Gen Z, 32% millennials, 27% Gen Xers, and 27% Baby Boomers. Two-thirds (66%) of responders were White, 12% Hispanic, 14% Black, and 6% Asian/Pacific Islander. 

“Our goal was to produce a survey inclusive of all ethnic groups drawn from the key demographic and geographic sectors that explains WHY consumers behave toward brands in the soft drink sector,” said Hunter Thurman, president of Alpha-Diver. “Data drawn from this large sample enabled us to rank the brands according to three dimensions: consumer purchase behaviour, their emotional attachment to brands, and the trajectory of brand usage: increasing, stable or declining. Together this data set provides deeper insights into the beverage sector than previously available.” 

Alpha-Diver’s proprietary research methodology breaks down brands by the four leading drivers of consumer behaviour, as well as mapping their sales trajectory, the strength of consumers’ attachment to a brand, and their habituation or routine consumption of beverage brands. 

• Experientially-driven brands – providing new sensory discoveries – standouts are: AHA sparkling water, Starry Lemon Lime and LaCroix. 
• Rationally-driven brands – practical options – Dasani, Celsius and Aquafina lead. 
• Tribally-driven brands –providing a social connection among users – Lipton, Pepsi and Nestlé Pure Life. 

• Instinctual – feel good, impulse driven brands – Red Bull, Monster and Mtn Dew, are favourites. 

The Bev50 Psych Pulse also includes key data on the five potential barriers to consumer brand choice, including: 

• Price: Does the brand offer a good value? 
• Time: What must I give up doing to obtain? 
• Social: What will others think of me? 

• Emotional: Will I be disappointed by the beverage? 
• Physical: How will dinking this beverage make me feel? 

Consumers have a strong emotional connection to their coffee and tea brands. Currently, the RTD category, within both coffee and tea, is where the most innovation is taking place so its inclusion on the top 50 brand list makes sense. RTD brands are continually meeting consumer demand for new flavours, organic and natural ingredients, unsweetened/less sweetened, lower caffeine/caffeine free, higher caffeine, functional ingredients, improved packaging — the list goes on. I’m curious to see how the list may differ next year — will the same RTD coffee and tea brands ‘make it’ or will new/younger brands top the list? 

• Vanessa L Facenda, editor, Tea & Coffee Trade Journal.
  Keep in touch via email: vanessa@bellpublishing.com Twitter: @TCTradeJournal or LinkedIn: Tea & Coffee Trade Journal

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Starting this fall, the lab will offer the first wave of educational programming to select Arizona State University (ASU) students and Starbucks partners. The first wave will leverage ASU’s leading educational technology and world-class faculty to enrich the student experience, including study abroad opportunities tied to existing ASU degree programs, such as Sustainability, Sustainable Food Systems, Global Agribusiness, Environmental and Resource Management, among others. Starbucks lab is expected to physically open within the next three years.

For more than a decade Hacienda Alsacia, the company’s first and only company-owned and operated coffee farm, has focused on the sustainability of coffee. The farm is dedicated exclusively to research and development, where the Starbucks team is creating new coffee varieties, testing disease-resistant coffee trees and developing and sharing agricultural practices to produce a higher yield and ensure the future of coffee. While the research and development at Hacienda Alsacia will continue, the lab will expand the capabilities and collaboration needed to cultivate positive social and environmental change beyond coffee.

“This is an opportunity for us to advance Starbucks environmental promise to give more than we take and our farmer promise to ensure the future of coffee for all,” said Laxman Narasimhan, Starbucks chief executive officer. “We know we cannot do this important work alone, and the possibilities in front of us to scale solutions, partner with thought leaders and serve as a global hub for innovation are limitless.”

Starbucks mission extends well beyond its customers, partners and cafes. As a company that buys 3% of the world’s highest quality and ethically sourced arabica coffee from more than 400,000 farmers in more than 30 countries, Starbucks understands its future is inextricably tied to social and environmental challenges. The company has a long-standing commitment to work alongside communities to become a resource positive company, including cutting its carbon, water and waste footprints in half by 2030. In partnership with others, Starbucks is committed to identifying new ways to give more than it takes with the belief that the company can build a great business that scales for good and has a positive impact on the future.

Starbucks and ASU have a long-standing partnership of working together to build educational and innovative programming. Most recently, Starbucks and ASU reached a milestone of graduating more 10,000 partners through the Starbucks College Achievement Program.

“This is an exciting new chapter in our nearly decade-long partnership with Starbucks,’’ said Arizona State University president Michael Crow. “The new sustainability learning and innovation lab will expand on our collaboration together, working closely to tackle critical challenges with a collective commitment to seek new and sustainable approaches that impact global communities.”

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Since entering the Italian market in 2018 with the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Milan, around 450 jobs have been created and more are on the way: by the end of 2023, there will be 36 Starbucks stores in Italy in total. At the end of May, two more stores will also open at Termini Station: a grab&go in the basement and a store on the terrace, to welcome tourists, commuters and locals when they arrive in Rome.

First entering the Lazio region in 2022 with the opening of Castel Romano, Piazza Montecitorio marks Starbucks’ 25th opening in Italy.

“We are thrilled to open our first store in the center of Rome, with even more exciting plans to come for the capital. Tomorrow’s opening will be the first in a series of wonderful surprises for the city,” Matteo Morandi, CEO of Percassi Retail, commented. “Lazio is a very important region for Starbucks, and we celebrated our first opening in the province of Caserta last month, reaffirming our long-term commitment to continued growth in Italy.”

The shop in Montecitorio, which will create 35 new jobs, has an area of 200 square metres on two floors, and 80 seats with a view of the Chamber of Deputies. The materials reflect the colour shades of Piazza Montecitorio, the ground floor made of travertine marble and tuff, typical of traditional Roman buildings, where customers can order food and drink surrounded by artworks on the walls. The upper floor has been designed with a more muted colour palette and offers a quieter space to enjoy the best traditional Starbucks experience.

“Coffee culture is very deep-rooted in Rome, with espresso being the most popular beverage”, commented Vincenzo Catrambone, general manager of Starbucks Italy. “Even in Starbucks stores in Italy, the most bought drink is espresso, while younger generations love Starbucks cold beverages and iced coffee. We are always working to create unique food and beverage proposals for our Italian customers during the seasons along the year, to continue to meet their needs and amaze them.”

Food offerings include both bakery and salad items, as well as desserts. The menu also includes the new Oleato beverages made from Starbucks arabica coffee infused with extra virgin olive oil, which first launched in Italy in February and are available in stores in the US, Japan and the UK. Drinks from the recently launched summer menu including Starbucks Refresha Drink and seasonal Frappuccino Blended Beverages will also be available.

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The Starbucks Chocolate Java Mint Frappuccino is a blend of Starbucks Frappuccino roast coffee, chocolate, and mint flavours with Frappuccino chips, served as an iced beverage. It is finished with a layer of mocha sauce, whipped cream, and a chocolate cookie mint sprinkle topping.

“With the Chocolate Java Mint Frappuccino, we wanted to take a new approach to the classic combination of mint and chocolate to create a blended coffee beverage that elicits nostalgia for one of our favorite summer treats,” said Maureen Matthews of Starbucks beverage development team. “The new white chocolate mint sauce is subtle and creamy, and when paired with the crunch of Frappuccino chips and a swirl of rich mocha, is reminiscent of mint chocolate chip ice cream poolside on a warm summer day.”

Starbucks White Chocolate Macadamia Cream Cold Brew combines Starbucks Cold Brew, sweetened with macadamia syrup, topped with a white chocolate macadamia cream cold foam and finished with toasted cookie crumbles.

“When creating Starbucks White Chocolate Macadamia Cream Cold Brew, we were inspired by memories of fresh macadamia nuts on tropical vacations and the distinct flavour of white chocolate macadamia nut cookies,” said Matt Thornton of Starbucks beverage development team. “The smooth flavour profile of Starbucks Cold Brew combined with the nuttiness of macadamia flavour, creaminess of white chocolate flavoured sauce in the cold foam, and salty cookie crumbs delivers the perfect balance of sweet and savoury that customers love and offers a moment of summer fun with every sip.”

New Starbucks Green Apron Blend is a Starbucks Blonde roast coffee, with hints of Honeybell orange and graham crackers.

As part of Starbucks continued commitment to its partners, the company is designating $5 per bag and, for a limited time, $0.10 per brewed cup of Green Apron Blend sold to the Caring Unites Partners (CUP) Fund, a Starbucks programme that provides grants to eligible Starbucks employees in times of need. Nearly 24,000 idea submissions from Starbucks partners shaped its flavour and roast profiles, as well as which regions the coffee was sourced from, and the look and feel of the packaging.

Green Apron Blend is available at company-operated stores in the US as a 1lb bag of whole bean coffee year-round, and is now available as a daily brewed hot coffee for a limited time. Read more about Starbucks Green Apron Blend on Starbucks Stories.

Also available for a limited time at Starbucks stores and Starbucks Reserve locations in the US are two single-origin Starbucks Reserve coffees, roasted daily at Starbucks Reserve Roasteries.

Starbucks Reserve Rwanda Sholi is a rare coffee from Rwanda featuring tea-like florals, notes of raspberry and cherry skins, and toffee sweetness. The female-founded coffee cooperative behind this coffee is focused on a spirit of service to others.

Starbucks Reserve Papua New Guinea Moanti, named after Moanti Ise, represents the one-woman force who brought hundreds of smallholder farmers together and transformed the lives of her community. This rare coffee from Papua New Guinea has aromas of sandalwood, notes of cocoa nib, hints of thyme and a syrupy-sweet finish.

Starbucks is finishing off its summer menu with another RTD on-the-go beverage, the Starbucks Frappuccino Mini chilled coffee drink, available in Caramel and White Chocolate Mocha. Read more about the new Starbucks ready-to-drink beverage line-up here.

To learn more about the new Starbucks food and beverages available in US stores, visit starbucks.com/menu/featured.

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Responsible coffee sourcing is critical in effectively addressing widespread poverty among smallholder coffee producers and farm workers with coffee companies expected to pursue favourable practices such as pricing as well as technical and financial support to the producers.

A July 2021 report by Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, a joint center of Columbia Law School and Columbia Climate School at Columbia University in New York, says the low coffee prices for the 2017-2019 period brought to the fore ”how the coffee sector has failed at lifting producer incomes and set in motion new efforts to achieve a living income for all producers.”

“Despite the many responsible sourcing efforts in the coffee industry, trends illustrate the continued disconnect between procurement priorities and sustainability commitments within many companies and within the sector at large,” the report says. It defines responsible sourcing as “decisions and actions related to procurement of coffee beans that enables economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable production, including producer and farmworker well-being.”

The report, titled “Responsible Coffee Sourcing: Towards a Living Income for Producers”, shows that in a sample of ten coffee producers, only in two, Brazil and Vietnam, do farmers earn income that is above poverty line. The international poverty line has been put at USD $2.15, $3.65 and $6.85 for low income, low-middle-income and upper-middle-income countries respectively.

In the other eight countries the average income is below the poverty line. The ten countries analysed in the Columbia report have an estimated 89 percent of global coffee exports and 62 percent of producers globally.

Brazil, which is projected to report a 2.4 million bags decline in coffee exports to 36.65 million bags in the 2022/23, is the only country among the ten analyzed in the report where the average coffee farmer earns a net coffee income that is above some living income estimates.

East Africa’s leading coffee producer Uganda was listed among countries with the largest gap to living income, with the report estimating average earnings from coffee by farmers at $88 annually relative to living income reference values that range from over $2,000 to nearly $6,000.

The report attributes the huge gaps in achieving living income for coffee producers to two emerging trends including the transfer of risk to coffee producers away from other supply chain actors as well as removing roasters and retailers from the sphere of sustainable production by confining it to the farm level. The report identifies company sourcing practices as being “a critical part of closing the living income gap for producers and ensuring living wages for farmworkers.”

Coffee companies either active or that source their coffee from the 12.5 million coffee producers in the more than 30 producing countries, are at different levels of achieving full responsible sourcing practices with the International Coffee Organization (ICO) saying the firms and other actors have an opportunity to “develop more direct, transparent and stable commercial relationships with suppliers that reward good performance (such as quality and sustainability) with price incentives and responsible sourcing practices (such as contract and payment terms).”

However, the ICO says despite “existing sustainability claims and initiatives, suppliers (coffee farmers) often cannot meet their cost of production or living.”

Interest vs practice

Dublin, Ireland-based multinational taste and nutrition company Kerry Group, said the concept of responsible coffee sourcing “is not yet very widespread.” However, Kerry’s own previous research findings “continuously show an overwhelming consumer interest in supporting sustainability initiatives” according to Coralie Garcia-Perrin, global marketing director for taste at Kerry Group.

The company, which celebrated its 50^th anniversary last year along with a 19.3 percent increase in revenues to €8.8 billion ($11.058 billion), has committed to have its coffee suppliers “farm for a long time, receive a good return for their coffee and that their farming local community is maintained and thrives with their coffee sales and exports,” according to Garcia-Perrin.

“Kerry is focused on developing high-value extracts from coffee sourced from our suppliers under the Café Femenino programme,” she said. “Since 2003, the Café Femenino coffee program has been an ethical sourcing model committed to ending the cycle of poverty affecting women coffee farmers around the world.”

The Café Femenino programme is operational in Peru, Indonesia, Brazil, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Mexico, Colombia and Rwanda. Under the programme, which was co-founded by Peruvian women farmers alongside Organic Products Trading Company, more than 4000 women coffee farmers are reaping the benefits of ethical sourcing practices.

“Café Femenino provides direct compensation to women farmers for their coffee beans, along with the opportunity and resources to enact positive change in their communities and on their own terms,” Garcia-Perrin said. Through Café Femenino’s efforts, subscribed women coffee farmers “receive payments and payment premiums directly, and assume leadership roles, such as in co-op voting and on boards.” The members also secure rights to the land they farm to produce Fair Trade Certified and organic-certified coffees.

Finding gaps in the approach

The Columbia Institute Centre report analyses several other coffee companies’ approach to responsible sourcing including Nestlé, JDE Peet’s, Smucker, Starbucks, Lavazza, Tchibo, Keurig, Costco, Tata, and Unilever. The evaluation exposed huge disparities in their programmes especially when it comes to pricing, traceability and support for coffee producers.

“While all of the companies have established sustainability commitments or projects relevant to producers, none are able to guarantee that all viable producers in their supply chains earn a living income,” the report says. Some of the areas the companies need to do more include committing to have long-term contracts with coffee producers and ensuring the price coffee farmers receive “commensurate with the Living Income Reference Price or even better.”

Moreover, gaps emerged when it came to tracking of prices or premium offers to ensure coffee producers received them especially for coffee that has been certified or verified as responsibly sourced according to the report. When it came to cost-plus margins, the report says there is lack of transparency by coffee companies that have specialised programmes.

However, Starbucks, the Seattle, Washington-based multinational chain of coffeehouses and Reserve Roasteries that has been ranked the world’s largest coffeehouse chain, says on its website it takes “a holistic approach to ethically sourcing coffee through responsible purchasing practices, farmer loans and forest conservation programs.”

“When we buy coffee this way, it helps foster a better future for farmers and a more stable climate for the planet, and it helps create a long-term supply of the high-quality beans we’ve been carefully blending, roasting and packing fresh for more than forty years,” it says.

Starbucks, which by 2021 had 33,833 stores in 80 countries, credits Conservation International, a nonprofit environmental organisation based in Virginia, for the buying guidelines, dubbed Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices, which the company uses to address ethical coffee sourcing.

Most coffee producers, says Rainforest Alliance (RA) in a February 2023 statement, have “little to no power in negotiating prices, terms of trade, and the additional resources required for sustainable production.” RA says coffee producers bear most of the risks, burden of compliance, and impacts of climate change, yet only a small part of the value of certification reaches them.

RA, an international non-profit organisation working at the intersection of business, agriculture, and forests to promote responsible business practices, had previously included ‘shared responsibility’ in its 2020 Sustainable Agriculture Standard for the purpose of “addressing inequity in global supply chains.” Through the shared responsbility concept, RA has pledged its support in addressing existing constraints facing farmers by ensuring they are rewarded for their sustainability efforts and that the “costs of investments in more sustainable farms and production are shared between farmers and companies.”

Although RAs uses Rainforest Alliance Certification Program “to drive more economic transparency and steer more resources to farmers,” the Columbia Centre report identifies shortcomings on the contribution of the voluntary sustainability standards (VSS) used in coffee towards achieving living income and wages. Living income has been described as the net earnings necessary for a coffee producer to afford a decent living depending on where one lives while living wage is payment needed to enable employed farm workers afford a decent living standard and is usually higher compared to the minimum wage in a specified place.

“VSS are not sufficient to significantly improve producer income or to enable them to achieve a living income,” the report says. It argues that the VSS does “not benefit the poorest producers, and that much of the additional retail costs of certified products are captured by roasters and retailers, rather than producers.”

Apart from the Rainforest Alliance other leading external third-party VSS in the global coffee industry include Fairtrade and 4C. There are also verifications that offer second party assurance in the industry including SMS Verified, Enveritas Gold, NKG Bloom, and AtSource.

Ensuring commitments

Responsible coffee sourcing would require the commitment of all actors in the coffee value chain with coffee companies taking a lead role.

“It implies building partnerships across supply chains in which the terms of trade and price match the objective of increasing the profitability and sustainability of coffee production,” says the ICO in another report, further noting, “this match could mean less dependence on the commodity markets (de-commoditisation) and that the prices and premiums paid are informed by cost of production, living income or living wage benchmarks.”

Kerry Group’s Garcia-Perrin said coffee companies can drive responsible sourcing by “committing to fair pricing and making commitments to support the environment around coffee farms and helping [farmers develop] a sustainable living community.” A key aspect, she added, “is committing contractually to compensate farmers over an extended period of time hence providing a measure of stability to allow the farmers and their communities to plan for the future.”

The discussion around responsible coffee sourcing comes at a time when the performance of global coffee market is improving despite a slight dip in production. Although world coffee production declined by 1.4 percent to 168.5 million bags in coffee year 2021/22, consumption rose 4.2 percent to 175.6 million bags for the same period. Consumption is expected to reach 178.5 million bags in  coffee year 2022/23.

How increased export sales and consumption volumes translates into a better living income for coffee producers and living wage for farm workers continues to ignite debate among coffee industry actors in nearly all the 30 coffee producing countries.

• Shem Oirere is a freelance business journalist based in Nairobi, Kenya. He has spent more than 25 years covering various sectors of Africa’s economy including the region’s agribusiness. He holds BA in International Relations and Diplomacy from the University of South Africa and earned a higher degree in journalism from the London School of Journalism and is also a member of the Association of Business Executives (ABE).

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Following the global search for the new leader of Starbucks, Narasimhan joined the company as incoming CEO on 1 October, 2022, bringing nearly 30 years of experience leading global consumer goods businesses and advising retail, grocery, restaurant and e-commerce companies. Over the past five months, he has embarked on a unique immersion experience, traveling to work with partners (employees) in over 30 stores, manufacturing plants and in support centres around the world, earning his barista certification along the way. He became immersed in the reinvention plans for the company led by Schultz who returned as interim CEO effective 4 April 2022.

Since Schultz returned last year, Starbucks unveiled a company-wide reinvention strategy and continued to deliver on more than $1 billion in investments in retail partners and stores for prioritized areas such as increased pay and sick time accrual, new financial well-being benefits, modernized training and collaboration, store innovation and equipment and the celebration of coffee. The company saw a 47 percent stock price increase since the Q2 FY22 earnings call through the Q1 FY23 earnings call, and market cap growth of approximately $40 billion during that same time. The company also delivered 50 percent in Total Shareholder Return in this time period, far outpacing the S&P 500. Starbucks was also most recently named the most valuable restaurant brand for the 7th consecutive year by Brand Finance.

“The board wants to express our sincerest thanks to our founder, Howard Schultz, for selflessly picking up the leadership mantle when asked—forgoing compensation and putting aside his own pursuits—for the love of our company and its partners,” said Mellody Hobson, Independent Starbucks Board of Directors chair. “We would not be where we are without him.”

Narasimhan officially assumes the role of chief executive officer today and will lead Starbucks Annual Shareholder Meeting this Thursday, March 23. As he ascends into the role, Narasimhan will continue engaging the leadership team, sharing his early learnings and insights and assessing opportunities for the company as they chart a path forward.

“Laxman’s intensive immersion into the business coupled with his extensive experience as a proven brand builder, innovator and operator have uniquely prepared him to lead Starbucks into its next phase of growth,” said Hobson. “This immersion has deepened Laxman’s understanding of Starbucks culture and values. In this time of learning and listening, he has already won the hearts and minds of our partners around the world.”

“I am humbled to officially step into my role as Starbucks chief executive officer, leading our incredible team of more than 450,000 green apron partners around the world. The foundation Howard has laid – building from scratch an iconic global brand fuelled by a lasting passion to uplift humanity – is truly remarkable, and I am honoured to have the opportunity to build on this deep heritage,” said Narasimhan. “As a human connection business, we have limitless possibilities to deliver for our partners, our customers, our investors and our communities through every cup and every connection. I am excited to work alongside our partners worldwide to unlock the limitless future of Starbucks.”

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The Starbucks Reserve Roastery Milan will also debut five beverages to customers on 22 February: Oleato Caffè Latte, Oleato Iced Cortado, Oleato Golden Foam Cold Brew, Oleato Deconstructed and Oleato Golden Foam Espresso Martini. Starbucks will begin to introduce the beverages in select markets around the world, starting with Southern California in the United States this spring. Later this year, Japan, the Middle East and the United Kingdom will launch the beverages.

“During my first trip to Milan in 1983, I was captivated by the sense of community, connection, and passion for coffee I found in the city’s espresso bars. It was that trip that inspired me to bring the ritual of handcrafted espresso to Starbucks and to America. Oleato represents the next revolution in coffee that brings together an alchemy of nature’s finest ingredients – Starbucks arabica coffee beans and Partanna cold pressed extra virgin olive oil,” said Howard Schultz, Starbucks interim chief executive officer. “Today I feel just as inspired as I did 40 years ago, Oleato has opened our eyes to fresh new possibilities and a transformational way to enjoy our daily coffee,” said Schultz.

Starbucks continuous search for inspiration revealed a family tradition that has existed in regions of Italy for generations – enjoying a spoonful of extra virgin olive oil each day as an uplifting ritual. This led Starbucks to Partanna, an Italian extra virgin olive oil brand with more than 100 years of tradition and dedication to farming and crafting premium extra virgin olive oil.

Oleato, the New Coffee ritual 

Partanna created a highly curated blend of extra virgin olive oil from the finest Mediterranean olives, including the high-quality Nocellara del Belice (also called Castelvetrano) olives from Partanna, Sicily. The blend was thoughtfully selected to pair perfectly with Starbucks coffee, which is then skillfully infused in the beverage to unlock a smooth and delicious experience like no other.

Starbucks Oleato beverages that will be served in Starbucks stores around the world:

In select markets, customers will also be able to add a press – the equivalent to a spoonful – of Partanna extra virgin olive oil as a customization to select beverages. The press will then be infused (steamed, shaken or blended) as a customization into select drinks such as espresso beverages and tea lattes. Golden Foam will also be available as a customization, which can be added as a delicious topping on both hot and cold beverages.

Designed to pair perfectly with the exquisite Starbucks Reserve coffee, the Starbucks Reserve Roastery Milan today debuted four Starbucks Reserve Oleato beverages:

“When creating the beverages, we were inspired by the rich history and origin stories of coffee and olive oil – two of nature’s most transcendent ingredients,” said Amy Dilger, principal beverage developer for Starbucks. “Infusing Starbucks coffee with olive oil yielded a velvety smooth, rich texture, with the buttery, round flavours imparted by the olive oil perfectly pairing with the soft, chocolatey notes of the coffee.”

“One thing that’s special about Partanna’s olives is their uniquely nutty, slightly sweet flavours – think of that rich smoothness of a buttery caramel, it’s a natural complement to our coffee,” said Dilger. “Whether you enjoy Oleato hot or cold, you get this really luxurious, textural experience.”

Read more about the inspiration and creation of these beverages here.

Raising the Bar on Coffee Innovation  

Italy’s romance with coffee, food and connection has served as an inspiration for the Starbucks Experience since the company’s earliest days, influencing its coffee, food and store designs, as well as its reverence for artistry.

“The art of coffee craft, curation and creation remains core to Starbucks. Our aspiration to continue to be the world’s leader in premium coffee – in both the art and the science – is as strong today as it was more than 50 years ago when Starbucks first opened its doors,” said Schultz. “Embracing our heritage, we remain dedicated to exceeding our customers’ expectations by bringing innovative experiences to savour.”

From the first Starbucks Caffè Latte served in 1984, to Pumpkin Spice Latte, Nitro Cold Brew, and the more recent Iced Shaken Espresso beverages, Starbucks continues to bring its customers innovative beverages at scale.

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In addition, Starbucks is donating $200,000, split evenly between Team Red, White & Blue and Team Rubicon to support the veteran community.

While Veterans Day is only one day out of the year, Starbucks’ commitment to supporting the military community – including hiring veterans, military spouses and opening Military Family Stores – is a year-round effort.

Starbucks’ ongoing military commitments include:

• In FY21, it hired more than 7,700 veterans and military spouses across Starbucks roles in the U.S.
• Its has 109 Military Family Stores across the nation to-date. Starbucks Military Family Stores are located near major military bases and are designed to hire and honour soldiers, veterans, and their families, and aim to offer a welcoming space for local communities to work, unwind and gather to build a stronger community.
• The company is dedicated to supporting service organizations like Headstrong, Team Red, White & Blue and Team Rubicon who help veterans as they transition to civilian life, continue to develop as leaders, and leverage their skills and passions to positively change communities.
• It offers partner (employee) benefits that accommodate the needs of our active-duty military and military families, including Military Service Pay, which provides up to 80 hours of pay each year, to eligible partners (employees), when active-duty service obligations take them away from their work with the company.
• Veteran partners can extend the Starbucks College Achievement Plan benefit to a qualified family member for 100% tuition coverage for a first-time bachelor’s degree through Arizona State University’s online program.
• As a company, it is focused on breaking the stigma around mental health through partnerships, advocacy and awareness – including in the military community.

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Carbon, and in turn, the carbon footprint, has been recognised as one of the leading causes of human-induced climate change. Over the past few decades, companies have shifted their infrastructures to reduce the negative impact, hoping to protect plants, waterways, and animals. However, when carbon is in the soil, it improves its ability to retain water and its overall fertility. So, the challenge is how do we get carbon out of the air and back into the earth? The solution is regenerative agriculture.

Bringing soil to the forefront

For decades, the climate change conversation centered around harm reduction with the goal of shifting agricultural practices to become carbon neutral. The challenge with this model is that it simply maintains the environment where it is today, which means that the current challenges plaguing the industry, including climate unpredictability, drought, and pest infestations, remain. Minimising harm is no longer enough to mitigate the risks of climate change; the environment needs to improve. Instead of adopting methods that will sustain, the focus needs to be repair and regeneration, beginning with adopting agricultural practices that will build healthy soil.

Regenerative farming begins with recognising soil’s role in the health of the planet and those living on it. “Conventional, which is the majority, this is where we have been, and sometimes it is where we are still stuck, but the method is destructive and unsustainable,” said Michael Ham, president, Well AP, Mt Kisco, New York. “Sustainable, which is achieving net zero, will maintain the status quo, but we need to reverse the damage that has been done and the only way to do that is through regenerative. This is where the focus needs to be in the next decade for us to really bring things back to where they should be. “Recognising the benefit, both for the earth and farm itself, Ham shared that their Korean tea farm Wild Orchard made the commitment to shift its practices from organic to regenerative. This past May, Wild Orchard obtained the Regenerative Organic Certification, becoming the first tea farm to receive this certification.

Curious deer traipsing through tea plants that are surrounded by other plants and wildflowers. Image: Wild Orchard

“Regenerative agriculture takes it one step further by focusing on the health of the soil,” said Ham. The model emphasises that soil requires living microbes to achieve its optimal health, which is obtained through various methods, including crop cover, minimising the amount of tillage, biodiversity, and intermittent grazing techniques, can grow nutrient-dense plants and reduce the amount of carbon in the environment.

In 2014, the Rodale Institute, Emmaus, Pennsylvania, released the white paper “Regenerative Organic Agriculture and Climate Change: A Down to Earth Solution to Global Warming,” urging the agricultural sector to consider the long-term impacts of its practices and to adopt regenerative methods. According to the Rodale Institute, most agricultural soil has lost between 30 to 75 per cent of its organic carbon. The loss has been linked to the atmosphere and conventional farming practices. Six years later, the Rodale Institute published “Regenerative Agriculture and the Soil Carbon Solution,” reiterating the harm in conventional practices, and urged the agricultural industry to adopt regenerative practices to build healthy soil, and in turn, reduce the levels of carbon in the atmosphere.

Dr Rattan Lal, director of carbon management and sequestration centre, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, and winner of the 2020 World Food Prize, has extensively studied soil health. He continues to emphasise the importance of protecting the soil, both for the health of the environment and to improve food security. He explained the interdependency between the health of soil and the health of the planet, stating that if the health of the soil goes down the health of everything else goes down with it.

Making the shift to regenerative practices

In November 2020, the World Coffee Research organisation invited both Dr Lal and Andrea Illy, chairman of illycaffè, Trieste, Italy, to discuss soil health, and more specifically regenerative agriculture and the need for the coffee industry to shift its farming practices to mitigate the risks of climate change. Over the last five years, several coffee and tea manufacturers have adapted their sustainability strategies to focus on regeneration and soil health. Starbucks launched a holistic sustainability project with a focus on regenerative agriculture in Nariño, Colombia, with 100 smallholder farmers. Nestlé committed to investing 1.3 billion dollars, over a five-year period, to aid farmers with the transition to regenerative practices.

illycaffè announced its goal of becoming a carbon-free company by 2033, including zero-emission coffee plantations in both Guatemala and Kokkere, Ethiopia, where the farmers are adopting the principles of regenerative agriculture. While Unilever released its five regenerative agriculture principles, which would serve as a model of standards that they would use to help educate suppliers and guide their farmers.

Tazo launched a regenerative organic tea line in August. Image: Tazo Tea

This past August, Tazo Tea (formerly owned by Unilever, now owned by ekaterra) launched a regenerative organic tea line made with ingredients grown with regenerative agriculture practices. The product launch included four Tazo original tea blends relaunched as regenerative organic blends. The commitment to becoming regenerative included not just the farms themselves but also a focus on developing resilient communities and replenishing the planet’s resources.

“Tazo has always been a brand that challenges the status quo, and this regenerative organic transition is no exception,” said Laraine Miller, president, ekaterra Americas, New York. “For too long, business as usual has been killing our planet. It is time for every company, including the entire tea industry, to overhaul their means of production to combat climate change and help people and planet thrive.”

The tea and coffee industries are taking action, adopting strategies that focus on regeneration, beginning with educating farmers on the importance of soil health and providing the resources that will support them with making this transition. However, the path to become regenerative, is still in its infancy. “Regenerative agriculture might be the new buzzword on the block, but the key aspect behind it to shift the focus of sustainable farming from ‘doing no harm’ towards delivering positive impact is urgent and garnering more corporate commitment,” said Piet van Asten, head sustainable production systems-coffee, Olam Food Ingredients (OFI), Singapore. “This momentum is proving powerful in driving efforts around decarbonisation and pesticide reduction.”

The message from both the tea and coffee communities is clear. Instead of sustaining, we need to reduce the amount of carbon in the environment, a term, called decarbonisation, and the adoption of regenerative practices provides a strategy to help achieve this goal.

For regenerative practices to be viable at the farm level, the strategies adopted need to be responsive to the particular needs of the farmer.

“From our experience, it’s important to present it to farmers as an extension of what they already do well, rather than as a requirement to change existing practices,” said Van Asten. “To encourage uptake, we need to go beyond the buzzwords by translating what ‘regenerative,’ ‘climate-smart’ or ‘agro-ecological’ practices mean on the ground in terms of better productivity and livelihoods.”

OFI strives to do this through education, including highlighting the benefits that some of these shifts, that may initially appear counterintuitive, like integrated weed management, can provide. For example, through education, the farmers begin to see soil erosion, recycle nutrients, and harbour natural predators to control insect pests. “Educating farmers and supporting them to meet demand by shifting to more eco-friendly production makes what might initially seem a daunting task, an economically viable route in the long-term,” said Van Asten.

From an economic standpoint, this model is being looked at for its potential in developing more resilient crops, and in turn, aiding with food security. However, converting to this model requires farmers to look at the entire process, from soil to the harvest, including both the short- and long-term outcome of each of the techniques that are used. Machine harvesting, for example, traditionally uses fossil fuel emitting these toxins into the environment, which in turn, enters the soil, and the plants. However, innovation in agrotech is looking at eco-friendly alternatives to respond to these challenges so that large scale farms have an option that will maintain their productivity without causing harm to the environment.

At Olam AtSource agronomist shows the benefits of a properly pruned coffee plant. Image: Vanessa L Facenda

Currently, the tea at the 1000-acre farm of Wild Orchard is hand-picked, however, the company is looking at investing in battery powered harvesting machines to pluck their second and third flushes of their crops. The hope is that by incorporating these types of tools into their operation will help accelerate the amount of regenerative tea that enters the supply chain.

The long-term benefits of regenerative agricultural practices continue to gain recognition throughout the tea and coffee industries. On a positive note, each shift that is made at the farm level, whether it is increasing biodiversity, integrated weed management, or maintaining cover crops, will help to feed the soil, and over time, reduce the amount of carbon that is emitted into the atmosphere. The launch of the regenerative organic alliance certification is a tool that will help increase consumer recognition of this agricultural model. However, now, it is up to the industry to share the positive actions that their companies are taking so that the products that are grown through the regenerative model receive both the recognition and the economic value that they deserve.

• Anne-Marie Hardie is a freelance writer, professor and speaker based in Barrie, Ontario. She may be reached at: annemariehardie1@gmail.com.

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Seattle’s Best Coffee’s approachable line of whole bean, roast and ground packaged coffee, and K-Cup pods are available in a variety of roasts and flavour profiles across both foodservice and grocery channels. In addition to Starbucks packaged coffees distributed by Nestlé under the Global Coffee Alliance, Seattle’s Best Coffee joins Nestlé’s roster of well-known coffee brands in the United States including Nescafé, Nespresso and Blue Bottle. The addition adds depth to Nestlé’s North America coffee portfolio by further expanding the company’s position in the category.

“We continue to deepen our partnership with Nestlé to deliver the best of the Starbucks Experience to our customers in channels outside of our retail stores,” said Michael Conway, group president, Starbucks international and channel development. “We’re confident that Nestlé will continue to grow the Seattle’s Best Coffee brand as we focus on our strategy to elevate the premium coffee experience for consumers through the Starbucks brand.”

“Our partnership with Starbucks has confirmed Nestlé’s leading position in the dynamic and growing global coffee market,” said David Rennie, head of Nestlé Coffee Brands. “With the well-known Seattle’s Best Coffee brand, we will continue to build our leadership in coffee by offering consumers more choice for their everyday coffee.”

Since forming the Global Coffee Alliance in 2018, Vevey, Switzerland-based Nestlé and Seattle, Washington-based Starbucks have brought a wide range of premium coffee products to new markets at a fast pace – including whole bean coffee, roast and ground coffee as well as Starbucks capsules for Nespresso and Nescafé Dolce Gusto proprietary systems. Today, Nestlé distributes Starbucks consumer products and foodservice beverages across more than 80 markets outside Starbucks retail stores under the Global Coffee Alliance. The total global sales of Starbucks products distributed by Nestlé in 2021 reached CHF 3.1 billion (approximately USD 3.085 billion).

Through the Global Coffee Alliance, Nestlé and Starbucks will continue to work together closely to develop new, innovative products and go-to market strategies that will amplify the reach and expand the unique experience of the Starbucks brand locally and globally.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2022, subject to respective board and customary regulatory approvals. Terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.

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Remedy Mango Passion and Cherry Plum Kombucha 250ml, alongside DASH Water Peach and Cucumber 330ml, will be added to Starbucks UK’s soft drinks range. Both brands are crafted from all-natural ingredients and the drinks are free from sugar and artificial sweeteners. Recent research carried out by Remedy revealed this is a key consideration for UK shoppers, with 77% looking to reduce or
avoid sugar in their diet.

Max Hill, beverage and lobby manager at Starbucks UK, said: “At Starbucks UK, we are continuously seeking out new and innovative food and beverage choices that we know will resonate with our customers. Remedy Kombucha and DASH Water have demonstrated their widespread customer appeal with strong and consistent UK growth, and we look forward to welcoming both brands into Starbucks UK.”

The UK kombucha sector has expanded rapidly in recent months, currently worth £15.4million and growing at 23% year-on-year. Remedy is the UK’s no.1 kombucha, growing at +70% YOY. Remedy has also driven three quarters of the total category growth over the past six months. Remedy’s light and refreshing taste profile is making kombucha accessible to a mainstream shopper. Its handcrafted & long-age brewing process delivers a complex blend of sweet and sour flavours that result in a delicious daytime drink or alcohol alternative, whilst also containing live cultures, organic acids and antioxidants which can support gut health.

Anna Dominey, general manager at Remedy Drinks UK, said: “We’re so excited to be launching in Starbucks UK giving us the opportunity to reach a new audience who may not have tried kombucha before. At Remedy, our mission is to show that healthy can also be tasty and consumers consistently feedback to us that they love Remedy’s light and refreshing taste. Remedy has proven its widespread appeal through partnerships with leading supermarkets and retailers nationwide, and we’re looking forward to building on this further in collaboration with Starbucks UK.”

DASH is the UK’s no.1 brand in the fast-emerging seltzer category, with a value market share of 35%. Growing at 118% YoY, it is now one of the fastest growing drinks brands in the UK. DASH is passionate about combating the important environmental issue of food waste, by using wonky fruit and vegetables that have been rejected by supermarkets to naturally infuse water with a dash of flavour. Free from sugar, sweeteners and zero calories.

Jack Scott, co-founder said: “We’re thrilled that an iconic brand like Starbucks UK is getting behind our wonky mission to bring a fresh perspective to soft drinks, whilst raising awareness about the big issue of food waste. This launch is a big milestone for us, and we’re excited to reach a new audience with our wonky mission. Here’s to celebrating wonky – one curly cucumber at a time!”

Remedy and DASH’s rollout into Starbucks UK will be supported with a strategic marketing programme, including digital media, influencer partnerships, media relations and product sampling.

To find out more about Remedy Kombucha, visit Remedydrinks.com.
To find out more about DASH Water visit Dash-water.com.

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